Taylor learning French to fit in at Toon

Newcastle defender Steven Taylor has admitted he has begun to learn French to help him fit in with his new team-mates.

Alan Pardew's Magpies are now 41 per cent French speaking after the arrivals of four players from France's Ligue 1 in the January transfer window, to complement the five already at the club.

Taylor, 27, is now the only local academy product in the first-team and revealed he has been using 'teach-yourself-French' CDs in his car after seeing Yohan Cabaye learn English the same way.

He said: "It'll be nice to learn a bit of French, just in case. Cabaye did the same with the car CDs when he first joined and he is fluent in English now. I'm talking all the time, probably with a terrible accent, but I'm trying. Thumbs up means good."

The central defender added that he doesn't mind where the players come from so long as they improve the side. saying: "Competition is healthy. You want the best players. You look at the top-four teams and they are full of players from around the world."